On March 4th, Tsinghua SIGS and the University of Birmingham from the UK held a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signing ceremony online. Professor Jon Frampton, director of the University of Birmingham China Institute, and Professor Zhibing Zhang, co-director of the China Institute, attended the ceremony. From Tsinghua SIGS, Executive Dean Gao Hong, Associate Dean Ma Lan, Institute of Biopharmaceutical and Health Engineering (iBHE) Associate Dean Xing Xinhui, and Office of Global Affairs Director Ma Zhenyi attended.
In her remarks at the event, Executive Dean Gao Hong touched upon the increasing importance of international partnerships and exchanges between higher education institutions, especially in the face of global challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic. “I am pleased to sign this MoU with the University of Birmingham virtually. Since the emergence of the pandemic, both institutions have overcome unprecedented challenges and were able to carry out academic exchanges. I look forward to close cooperation in areas of mutual concern and fruitful results in the future.”
After, Professor Jon Frampton discussed common research interests between Tsinghua SIGS and the University of Birmingham, including diagnostics, therapeutics, cell therapy, and other fields. He also mentioned the many opportunities for cooperation between the two institutions, including talent cultivation, project application, and scientific research.
Director of the University of Birmingham China Institute Jon Frampton
Later, iBHE Associate Dean Xing introduced the development of iBHE and shared his experiences cooperating with the University of Birmingham over the years. Liam Grover, director of the Healthcare Technologies Institute (HTI) at the University of Birmingham, introduced HTI and its COVID-19-related research.
Representatives from the two institutions also discussed future cooperation, deciding to set up small working groups to determine specific areas of cooperation and carry out joint training programs for graduate students.
Executive Dean Gao and Professor Frampton signed the memorandum on behalf of their institutions.
Edited by Alena Shish & Yuan Yang
Photos by Li Jiong
